Over-the-counter derivatives, a growing part of the global financial markets, are challenging traditional modes of regulation. With the absence of a global financial regulator, the governance of derivatives is notable for private-sector solutions, especially standards established by self-regulatory organisations. As a consequence, it is of interest how China, a strong state, is responding to these new challenges while it pursues economic and financial market development. This research asks whether China's policies for these types of derivatives are converging to international practices and explores the factors behind this phenomenon. It measures the degree of convergence between Chinese over-the-counter derivatives regulation and documentation with precedents set by the Group of Thirty, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, and the International Swaps and Derivatives Association. The key findings establish that there is some convergence taking place over several dimensions, including principles such as their purpose, and practices such as how to approach risk management. This can be explained by several factors, namely financial crises and regulatory learning, the influence of international organisations, lobbying from private actors, and resolving legal uncertainty. The research methodology utilises a combination of process tracing, content analysis and the case study approach. Data consists of primary and secondary sources including government documents, trade journal articles and media reports, and they are supplemented by interviews with market actors. Several contributions to knowledge are made. This research provides a closer look at the policy process in China in the domain of derivatives, which insofar has mostly been limited to the legal profession, and it also adds to the literature on global governance and policy convergence, the latter of which has mostly concentrated on the effects of the European Union on member states or other policy areas such as the environment, health, and banking.